New Delhi: At a small corner table inside Khan Market’s Faqir Chand Book Shop, lawyer Anup Bamhi could often be found chatting to people who wandered into the shop. Sometimes accompanied by his wife Mamta, and other days by his younger son Abhinav, Bamhi greeted customers with a warm smile as they stood to purchase their finds in the quaint shop, which has become Delhi’s ‘it’ spot to click a gram-worthy photo.
Bamhi, 64, passed away on Sunday following a heart attack.
Faqir Chand began its journey in 1931 as the Oriental Book Shop in Peshawar Cantonment. After the partition, the owner moved to Delhi and set up a shop in Khan Market—Oriental Book Shop. It later became Faqir Chand Book Shop in 1951.
After Chand’s death, the shop was overseen by his wife Uma and granddaughter Mamta. In 1992, Mamta married Bahmi, and soon, the couple would become an inseparable part of the experience of the book shop. It had been a family tradition, one that continues through the ages, to spend the day at the shop, with a constant supply of chai.
Bamhi and Mamta, along with their two sons, lived for years in Flat 59 on Middle Lane, next to the Town Hall in Khan Market. Their shop, Faqir Chand and Sons, was on the Front Lane. In 2023, the family moved to Defence Colony.
Cheerful man, distinguished moustache
Born on 20 May 1962, Bamhi grew up in Nainital, Uttarakhand, and studied at the prestigious St Joseph’s College. A lawyer by profession, he was, however, known as the cheerful, bespectacled man behind the desk, with a distinguished moustache and a cap.
While Mamta and Abhinav were more available at the shop in the last few years, Bamhi also made his appearances on occasions. In a book signing event by former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud in October 2025, Bamhi was present, with his signature smile, dressed in a sunshine yellow shirt. They smiled and held up copies of Why The Constitution Matters.
On other days, he also sang Hume Tumse Pyaar Kitna as he sat with his wife, as Abhinav filmed the duo.
In his later years, Bamhi spent more time at home, as Abhinav expertly handled the crowd that never thinned, and had built a strong social media presence for the shop that features familiar faces from singer-songwriter Piyush Mishra, to historian William Dalrymple and politicians Kapil Sibal and Smriti Irani.
Also read: ‘Jana Nayagan is a soft political power’. Tamil industry questions stay on Vijay’s farewell film
From eight to none
Along with Faqir Chand, Bahrisons Booksellers is the other shop that survived the new age makeover of the upscale market.
Once home to eight bookstores, Khan Market gradually lost most of them to rising rents and changing consumer habits. ‘Full Circle’, the last to shut, relocated to Greater Kailash-1’s N Block Market in 2024.
The bookshop, which commands a steady stream of people waiting to click a photo outside its iconic doorway, was once also featured on Oprah Winfrey’s book club.
As Mamta and Bamhi held the fort, Abhinav learnt the reins of the business, building up the strong social media presence that the shop now commands.
Congress leader Pawan Khera penned down a tribute to Bamhi.
“Anup Bamhi will always be an institution for book lovers. Bookstores like Faqir Chand and Sons have made Delhi a loveable city. I have seen several bookstores close down due to assault by the online culture. I wish Faqir Chand and Sons continues to live on. That will be the real tribute to Anup,” wrote Khera on X.
Abhinav’s awareness of his family legacy came from his father reading out to him every night, telling him stories that have over time become family lore, ever since Bamhi became part of the Faqir Chand family. He is now carrying forward the legacy established by his parents.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)